Express-car.



5m. 694,494. Patented Mar. 4, |902..

J. E. PORTER.

EXPRESSl CAR.

(Application lad Feb. 11, 1901.), (lo Mdel.) 2 Sheets-:Sheet L @GEN TH: Nonms Pneus co.. PNoToLr-lo.. wAsMmcn'oN D. c.

No. 694,494. Patented Mar. 4, |902.

' .l. EIPOHTER.

y EXPRESS cnn. v v (Applimion med nb. 11, 190i.)

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WTNESSES UNITE STATES PATENT OFFICE.-

JOSEPH E. PORTER, OTTAWA, ILLINOIS.

EXPRESS-CAR.'

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 694,494, dated March 4, 1902 To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH E. PORTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ottawa, in the county of vLasalleand'State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Express-Cars, of which the following is a specification.

Of late years it has become quite a frequent occ urrence that railroad-trains are held up and the safes of the express companies which are carried on them are forced open and plundered. To prevent such robberiesris the object of this invention.

My invention relates to an improved construction of car in whichV the'express-safes may be carried; and its chief feature is anA interior steel-walled apartment in which the express messenger and his safe Will be measurably secure from attack and from which he can use his firearmsin defendinghis charge. Even if the robbers gain access to the outer part of the car they must still force an entrance to this inner apartment before they can possess themselves of the safe, and even then they must first disable or intimidate the messenger. features adapted to enable the messenger to hold it against attack.

The nature of my improvement is fully disclosed below, and also illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in Which- Figure 1 is an elevation, partly broken away, of my improved car. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section of the car. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section, partly broken away; and Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical section.

In said drawing, 5 represents the outer wall of the express-car, which, except in particulars hereinafterpointed out, may be of the ordinary construction. I provide it with a sliding door 6 at each side, through which the express matter is received and discharged, and it`may also, if desired, have small end doors 7, through which parties may enter the car from the engine or adjoining cars.

The interior of the car is partitioned ott,

'so as to form an interior compartment 10, the

walls forming this compartment being shown at 11 and being made, preferably, of sheetsteel, so that they will be proof against the bullets of small firearms and cannot be easily broken through. The sheet-steel is riveted I also provide the car with other or otherwise attached in any suitable way to thesupporting vertical bars 12, which are secured to the iioor and are stayed at the top by the roof members. The inner compartment may be roofed over with the sheet-steel, as kshow n at 13, Fig. et, and also floored with it, as shown at 14 in the same figure; but the vertical bars may be dispensed with it' the Walls are made of met-al heavy enough to be selfsupporting,and this construction isshown at Fig. 4.

The compartment 10 is provided with sliding doors 15, each opposite one of the doors 6, and giving opportunity for putting in and delivering the safes and other express matter. tained through sliding windows 16, located latv the corners of the compartment, and opposite outside Windows 17 in the outside of the car. The windows 16 are protected by Light for the compartment may be ob-` metal wickets or close shutters 18, and the windows 17 are protected by similar devices 19. When closed by the wickets, the windows will be bullet-proof. The shutters 18 and 19 move in ways 25.

The inner compartment is preferably located centrally in the car and comprises the major portion ofvits area, and a continuous passage-way of sufiicient width to` permit a person to walk in it is formed all around the compartment between its Wall 11 and the outer Wall 5 of the car. This passage-way is cut off, however, at will by doors 2l at each side of both main doors 6 and 15, so that even it the robber gains access to the passage he cannot get into the apartment 10 if the doors 21 are closed. Both the innerand outer walls are provided with' port-holes 22 at all needed points to give the messenger opportunity to re in any direction, andthese holes are protected by hinged shutters 23. I prefer also to line the outer wall 5 with sheet metal to an extent which will protect any one in the passage 20 from bullets fired from the outside of the car. This protecting sheet metal is shown at 24.

The metal door 1,4 will render the car much less susceptible to attempts to blow it up With-dynamite than is the ordinary construction of car.

In the use of the car the greatest security will be obtained by keeping all the doors and wickets closed and fastened except when the messenger is receiving or delivering freight. The car is a traveling fortress from which the messenger is permitted to tire at any robber ou the ground, and if driven from the passage 2O he can still defend himself in the innercompartment, the port-holes in which give him control of the passage.

I claiml. The express-ear provided with an inner compartment having its own walls at all sides and such walls being detached from the Walls of the car a suicient distance to form a Wide passage-way for persons entirely surrounding the inner compartment, said compartment being adapted to be closed, and the passageway also having doors whereby access to the entrance to the inner compartment may be shut olf, substantially as specified.

2. The express-car provided with an inner compartment having its own walls at all sides and such walls being detached from the walls of the car a sufficient distance to form a Wide passageway for persons entirely surrounding the inner compartment, said compartment being adapted to be closed, and the passageway also having doors whereby it may be shut olf at each side of the outer door of the car and the outer wall of the car having portholcs, substantially as specified.

3. An express-car provided with an inner compartment for carrying the express matter, the outer wall of the car and the wall of the compartment being provided with windows 16 and 17 arranged opposite each other, substantially as specified.

4. An express-ear provided with an inner compartment detached from the outer Walls of the car sufficiently to form a passage-Way all around the compartment, the outer walls and the inner compartment-walls being both provided with port-holes, and said passage- Way being provided with doors whereby portions of it may be eut oit, substantially as specified.

5. Theexpress-carhavingmetal-linedouter Walls, an inner compartment or safe detached from the outer walls a sufcient distance t0 form a passage-way for persons allaround the inner compartment, port-holes in the outer walls, port-holes in the walls of the inner conipartment, and doors in said passage way whereby access to the door of the inner compartment may be shut off, substantially as specified.

JOSEPH E. PORTER.

Witnesses:

W. W. CALKINS, H. M. MUNDAY. 

